


Sometimes Sacrifices Need To Be Made

by wtfisgoingonanymore



Series: Whumptober 2020 contributions [3]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Execution, M/M, Mentions of Beheading, Whumptober, manhandled, mentions of Merlin/Arthur - Freeform, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-03
Updated: 2020-10-03
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:00:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26789353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wtfisgoingonanymore/pseuds/wtfisgoingonanymore
Summary: A sorcerer has been caught, and it's not Merlin.
Relationships: George/Leon (Merlin)
Series: Whumptober 2020 contributions [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1945591
Comments: 6
Kudos: 39
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	Sometimes Sacrifices Need To Be Made

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SpiritWorld](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpiritWorld/gifts).



> No 3. MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY  
>  _ **Manhandled**_ | _**Forced to their Knees**_ | Held at Gunpoint
> 
> This one is dedicated to the creator of George/Leon in the first place: my dear friend @meteorjam on tumblr (aka SpiritWorld on ao3). You inspired and motivated me to start writing again in the first place, and I thank you greatly for that. You've been a dear friend who has fun with me, but also takes wonderful care of me. Thank you for your thoughtfulness, your friendship, your help, and just your general presence in my life. You're amazing and I am so glad to be friends with someone as amazing as you. (p.s. I'm sorry if it's not that great XDDD idk if I really did Geon any justice, but I tried my hardest)

"Why are you doing this?" Merlin softly whispered as he looked through the bars of the cell. doors

"Arthur needs you, Merlin. I have seen how much he has grown with you by his side. You are the key to Camelot's greatest king." 

"He needs you too. You're not just his brother in arms, you know? He thinks of all of you as his brothers, but you the most." Merlin's grip on the cell doors was unrelenting and unforgiving. 

Everything about this was just so wrong.

"Merlin...You are Arthur's best friend and, quite frankly, his soulmate. He's going to need you the most." 

"I can magic myself out of the pyre. It'll be fine." Merlin begged as tears pricked his eyes for the nth time.

"And prove that sorcerers are evil and guilty? Do not let them have the pleasure of seeing that. If you were to make the people accept magic, it has to be something beautiful."

"And what about your own lover? He's gonna be heartbroken without you." 

"George will be fine." 

Leon smiled fondly at the thought of his lover. He didn't know how, when, or why it happened, but he was always glad it did. He and George didn't show it quite as much as Merlin and Arthur, but they were in love by any other name. 

"He won't. He's going to see you die, Leon. Nobody is going to be okay with that." Merlin sobbed -his legs giving out underneath him.

"It will be a loss, but it will be the final loss. Merlin, I am very honored to have found family, friends, and love amongst the Camelot you and Arthur are slowly building. I'm glad I was able to see a glimpse of it, but I want the rest of Camelot citizens to see it too. If this is what it takes for Albion to continue on with you and Arthur on the throne, then I will do this proudly with my head held high." Leon spoke true to his reputation as the most loyal of the knights.

"Now, hold your head up high. I apologize for adding to your already busy job, but I will be asking you to take care of my George. He does not have many friends, and he tends to overwork himself. You have to remind him and lure him away from work. I know you don't like his jokes very much, but nothing makes him happier than when I laugh at it, so I'm going to have to ask you to laugh at them too. I just...I'm gonna miss him. I want him to be happy and healthy and safe, and I'm trusting you with it, Merlin." 

Merlin nodded his head. His grip on the cell doors loosened as he succumbed to defeat. Merlin didn't know what more to do anymore. Leon was right, and he wasn't backing down either. Merlin could not fight it any longer.

"Thank you, Leon. Thank you for being a great knight, a great brother, and a great person overall. If there was any other way, I..." Merlin sniffled and wiped away the tears

"It's alright, Merlin. Just...take care, okay? Take care of everyone and let them take care of you instead." Leon whispered as he rested his head against the bars and smiled lightly at him.

"You should've just let me take the blame. You shouldn't have stepped in to protect me." Merlin sighs softy 

"When Uther caught you doing magic to protect the kingdom and went over with his sword drawn, I knew there was only one thing left to do." 

"It's not fair. It should have never been you."

"We don't choose the happenings of life, Merlin. It chooses us."

*******

**"I, your king, have uncovered magic in the very heart of Camelot. This person has been undercover for years and managed to slither his way into our lives and deceive us. This is proof that magic can not be trusted, so today, we put an end to it."**

The crowd gasped in shock as they watched the guards drag and shove the former Sir Leon to the executioner's block. They pulled at him from the chains on his hands and tugged at the ones on his feet to trip him cruelly. When Sir Leon kept his head up and his face blank of any pain or emotion, they dragged him by the hair and threw him painfully onto his knees.

From the crowd, Merlin was trying his hardest not to cry. 

Arthur and the other knights were out on a mission, Gwen was working with George, so Merlin was all that was left. And Leon was quite happy with that. He wanted someone to be there, but he didn't want everyone to be there. Actually, watching him die would've been painful for all of them, and Leon did not want them to start a war against the king. They were not Morgana, but, with the right push, anyone can.

**"Because I am a merciful king who honors his knights, you will not face the fire for your treacherous deeds. Do you have anything left to say, sorcerer?"**

Leon looked out on the crowd and smiled lightly. "Magic is like a sword. It is as good and as bad as the person who wields it. The magic I am being persecuted for I used to protect the citizens of Camelot and the Once and Future King of Albion. The druids have revived me time and again for this exact moment where I may be able to assist Emrys and his king in uniting the lands of Albion and restoring the balance of the world. I am proud to be a knight of Camelot, a knight of the round table, a knight of Albion...a friend, a brother, and-"

Leon spotted George from a distance with Gwen running to catch up. George's eyes were uncharacteristically wide as emotions filled them so openly. He smiles lightly and fondly at him to reassure him.

"-and a lover. I love my home, I love my King, Arthur Pendragon." Leon smiled despite the tears that filled his eyes when he saw George running towards him. This was the first time Leon has seen so much emotion on George's face during working hours. He always said he'd be able to do it one day.

It's a shame they weren't happy emotions.

"And I love you," Leon spoke to George and George only. Obviously, he couldn't die before saying that. He didn't want to do it for fear of scaring him off, but...well, this was his first and last chance. He smiled and nodded at Merlin. 

Merlin turned to look away to help Gwen and George, who were fighting the guards that prevented them from going to Leon.

The guards grabbed hold of Leon and forced him by the hair onto the executioner's block. Leon closed his eyes as he waited for approximately 3 seconds. That was usually how long these things took.

_When Leon inhaled his final breath, he thought of George- George and everything that could've been. And when the blade came down, it was George that let out that breath in the most devastating cry of the loss of what should have been._


End file.
